Guilt and Storms
by Race the Derp
Summary: One-shot Takes place sometime after Cars 3: Jackson didn't know why he felt awful about that race. That one stupid race that changed his world. Now it's starting to overwhelm him but he doesn't know how he'll be able to apologize to Cruz. Rated T for swearing


**Surprise one shot time! Ok before you say anything, I'm still working on the next chapter for What Do We Do Now? And also this story has no relations to What Do We Do Now? I just really wanted to make this one shot about Cruz and Jackson. The thing is, I don't know if I ship them or not….I can see it going either way.**

 **Anyway, this takes place a little after Cars 3.**

Man, Jackson felt awful. It was the end of the season party that Jackson had expected to be the star of for another year, only to be pushed off to the side by that new girl. Cruz Ramirez, that was her name, sat at a large circular table with a bunch of the other Next Gens laughing and babbling. _Girls really do talk a lot…..I wonder how long it'll be until she shuts up._ Jackson looked up before quickly returning to his phone. At times his phone was his 'escape tool'. Whenever he didn't want to socialize with someone, he would pretend to have something important come up and leave when he felt like it got too awkward. It wasn't that Jackson didn't like to socialize, it was more of he didn't know how to do it without insulting or sounding really depressed and bored. _How the heck does she do it…...she talks so, so naturally like she doesn't have a care in the world!_

"Hey Cruz, how'd you do that flip!?"

"Yea, it was amazing! Can you teach me that someday?"

"Me too! You were amazing!"

Compliment after compliment, they never ended. With each compliment and each person congratulating Cruz, a bigger and bigger sinking feeling appeared in Jackson's tank. His crystal grey eyes met her large caramel brown eyes for a split second before Jackson filled with more guilt and looked away. That race….he felt so horrible for shoving her in the wall on the last lap and she was acting like nothing had even happened! He wanted to drive away as quickly and quietly as he could. Maybe he could go to Gale, she always understood and she wasn't much of a talker. Gale was probably the only real friend Jackson had ever had. He tried to move, but his tires wouldn't budge from their place. They seemed to be super glued to the tile. Perhaps it was the guilty feeling rising in his body that wouldn't allow him to move. And it didn't help that the lights were so dim either, it just added to the atmosphere. Jackson resumed to his phone, scrolling through random pictures that he found online. Not paying attention to a word the other racers were saying until one sentence caught his full attention.

"Yea, I know right? To bad Jacky Jack is apparently way to anti-social to even talk to us!" Cam Spinner cheerfully laughed causing a whole bunch of the other racers to laugh as well. Cruz on the other tire, she sat there rather uncomfortable. She knew Jackson wasn't the nicest car to be around but it felt awkward to be surrounded by cars just plain out talking trash about him.

Jackson felt his oil starting to boil slightly. His neutral expression turned into a slight frown while he sat at the other table. He never really liked Cam, always the one to make everyone else feel like garbage.

"At least Miss Past Trainer over here put him in his spot. Well he's normally in the front but you certainly shoved him down in the dirt, didn't you cutie." Cam continued as Cruz shifted slightly obviously not appealing to her situation. Jackson's tire began to twitch slightly. It wouldn't be long now until Cam made a jerk move to Cruz. "Or maybe you just had your good looks to flatter him, it was probably just good luck. But don't worry, you'll find your way to get to the back again. Or even quit the sport amd go back to training!"

Jackson's twitching subsided. His body calmed as he stared on at Cam. Within a second the force of what Cam had just said hit him in the gut. Jackson opened his mouth slightly in realization that this was a spitting image of him.

" _Don't you worry pal, you had a good run. Enjoy your retirement….."_

" _You will NEVER be a racer, you don't belong here. You don't DESERVE to be out here. You're just a trainer and that's all you'll ever BE!"_

Those two lines echoed through Jackson's mind, each circulation filling with more and more guilt. He had never exactly felt any emotion about something like this but for some reason this was really getting to him. He didn't notice the other racers leave except for him, Cam, and Cruz. Jackson looked up to see Cruz staring blankly at Cam, apparently soaking in everything he was saying. Jackson knew that expression, she wasn't exactly paying attention, in fact it looked like she was rather bored.

"And just to let you know..." _Oh boy, something nasty is about to happen._ Jackson prepared himself for a throw down of 'you're not good enough to race'. He saw Cruz give Cam's full attention now. "Just because you won out there once, doesn't mean you'll do it again. And if something happens to you out there, no one will care enough about you to even bat an eye if you crash or even kill yourself for that matter. Which I wouldn't mind personally." Jackson's windshield raised in surprise. He was definitely not expecting that. Jackson was used to Cam's ranting but he had never heard him actually tell a car to basically kill themselves. He didn't notice the breath he was holding until he let it out. _Heh, ironic he didn't say it to me instead. She has someone to care for her like McQueen and her other friends. And I have…._ Jackson's thought trailed off when he saw Cam slightly tapping Cruz while laughing. Jackson guessed that what he said really got into her head. He continued to tap her but the tapping turned into pushing as he got frustrated with Cruz hardly showing any emotion or the slightest sense that she was being bothered by his comments. It got to the point where he physically punched her in the side causing Cruz to yelp in pain. That's when Jackson's oil boiled over, and oh was Jackson going to make all hell break loose on Cam. It was one thing to do that to a veteran or to himself for all he cared. But take it onto the newbie who didn't know what she was doing at that level, now that's a line even Jackson knew not to cross.

"Hey Spinner!" Jackson called out. "Can it and take it someplace else. It's getting real boring listening to your weak insults, even I could do better than that. Plus it was a really dirt move to punch her!"

"Fuck off Jackass Storm. I know what I'm doing and I don't need a guy who is only slightly more experienced in the sport to come pushing his way through." Cam, now only inches away from Jackson's front bumper said. Cruz backed away slowly very confused on what was happening. Merely two months ago, Jackson would gladly be insulting her. She was dumbstruck on why he would be standing up for her now.

"Leave…. It…. Be! She obviously doesn't want to deal with this so why are you giving her all the bullshit you have to offer Spinner!" Jackson raised himself higher on his suspension to make himself look taller.

"Like you even care yourself. You're the one who crashed her into the Dodge Ram wall and the one who started insulting her in the first place!" Cruz was having an internal battle with herself. Was Jackson standing up for her or not? And why is he caring all of a sudden? It didn't make sense to her.

"I get it, I was a real dick. But maybe I've realized that being a jerk doesn't get anyone anywhere so maybe you can fuck off for once in your life!" Jackson coldly stared into Cam's eyes eventually causing him to back away and leave.

"You….you cunt…." Cam mumbled under his breath as he drove out that door.

"The nerve of some cars." Jackson muttered to himself before looking at Cruz and seeing the confusion and shock plastered across her face.

"Uh, sorry for the swearing...kind of a habit. You….you ok?" Jackson rolled over to her looking at the small dent in her side and returning to his cool monotone voice. The guilty pain arouse throughout his body again more vividly.

"Well yea. I wasn't going to let one guy run me into the dirt." Jackson was taken back by her impossibly hyper tone. _How the heck is she still so energetic?!_ "I am just a little confused. Why _did_ you stand up for me?" Cruz raised an eyelid at Jackson. She tried to look into his eyes but found he always looked away. Never in her entire life would she think that she would encounter an insecure Jackson Storm. The cocky, ignorant, quick worded Jackson Storm. Jackson felt his throat begin to swell up and his RPMs picking up.

"Listen….about the race..the Florida 500. I-I feel horrible about what happened. And...and I want to say...I'm sorry." Jackson now looked down at the ground preparing himself for what was to come.

"Wait, what?" If Cruz wasn't confused before, she was definitely confused now. First he stood up for her, and now he was apologizing?!

"I'm sorry ok!? I feel like a jerk for pushing you into the wall. I guess I was just...mad at myself for letting you get to my head and mad at myself for possibly injuring you. I've never really wanted to hurt another racer. I just don't know what I was thinking." Jackson was about to turn around and leave before Cruz called back out to him.

"Hey, don't worry about it." She said with a genuine smile. "I never really took it personal, it was just part of the race. Even if you didn't apologize, I still forgave you a little while after you did it." Cruz ended with her stiffled laugh.

"I uh...I guess. Well what I mean is..thank you. I was, still am, nervous about how you would take that."

"No problem!" She quickly gave him a hug but then saw him cringe when she backed away. "Uh, sorry….old habits die hard...I'm kind of a hugger. Now, you ready to lose Stormy boy?" Cruz said with a smirk on her face. Jackson at first didn't know how to respond to the playful teasing. He expected Cruz to begin ignoring him and pushing him away. But then again, that wasn't her personality at all. Instead of leaving her off with silence, he smirked and decided to play along.

"Yea, like I'd let anyone who constantly wears a costume beat me twice." Jackson replied.

"You're on." Cruz replied before chuckling her contagious cackle. Jackson, for once felt that someone besides his crew chief and truck driver actually didn't mind to hang around him. Cruz continued to laugh as she speed out the door with Jackson showing his iconic half smirk half smile, following closely behind.

 **Welp, that was my first one-shot! It's currently 2:20 A.M but I couldn't sleep because I had this on my mind...I hope you enjoyed a different story from the one I'm currently working on!**

 **And I know that this was a lot of swearing but believe me, you have no idea how much racers swear, that was the tip of the iceberg on what I've see** **n!**

 **Also a lot of people are asking me to continue this, so I might create a seperate story filled with post Cars 3 one-shots!**


End file.
